That's the problem with just going behind the door rather than giving her a toy or treat: she still needs to chew, and if she can't chew you, then she'll find something else.
I highly doubt it's aggression. If
anything, she could be biting your mother out of dominance. If your mother is not an assertive person, and Ryleigh is a dominant dog, then she knows your mother is easy to dominate. If your mother only enforces the method every third time she bites, then she knows she can get away with it every third time. Absolute consistency is a MUST. Everyone in the family has to use the same method every single time she bites, even if it's just a nibble. If you're playing and getting her riled up and she bites, you have to enforce the method immediately. There are no excuses, no exceptions, EVERY time she bites you have to use the method, period.
Here's an extreme example of a dominant mouther:
A trainer friend of mine recently worked with a 7-month-old Shar-Pei/Pit mix. Her owner got her at 3 weeks old--the mother had died, so she was a bottle baby. And as many bottle babies do in inexperienced hands, she turned into a very dominant dog. She took dominance to the extreme, and soon developed into a very aggressive dog. She and her owner could be sitting quietly when all of a sudden she'd get a hard stare in her eye and she'd latch onto her owner's arm. She didn't try to rip her arm off, she'd just hold her arm in her jaws and stare her in the eyes. Whoever dared to intervene was open to an attack. This dog was scary because she had NO warning signs at all. She always looked ready to lunge, so you never knew when she was really going to come at you. This dog thought she ruled the world, and since her extreme dominance had gone uncontrolled, she'd turned into an aggressive monster.
That's an extreme case of a dominant dog gone wrong.
When Ryleigh bites your mom, is her tail still wagging? Is she still playful/excited? Pay attention to her body language when she bites your mom. But like I said, I really doubt it's aggression. It's most likely a matter of everyone as a whole being more consistent. How often does Ryleigh get walked? I know you said she gets walked for 1-2 hours when you can, but how often is that? A romp in the backyard isn't enough for any dog, but especially not a Shepherd. If she could walked by someone
at the very least 5 days a week, that's a start.
As for her pulling, you might consider a Gentle Leader. GLs are a head collar. They are made like a horse halter--you have control of the dog's head. They are not a muzzle---you will get that reaction more than once. I am a huge fan of GLs. I've trained more dogs than I can count, but one of mine could not be leash trained with any humane method known to man. I tried everything I knew to try, with NO success. At 3 years old I still couldn't get any method to work for him. A trainer friend of mine recommended the GL, which I'd never used, and he's been using it for about 6-7 months now and he's PERFECT. I'm starting to wean him off of it now and he's still doing great. If you do decide to go with a GL, you will probably also see the cheaper Halti--don't go for it. It is a good tool as well and can produce the same success as a GL, BUT, if you've never used a headcollar, the Halti can be a problem. The GL has a clip under the chin, whereas the Halti does not. The Halti is extremely easy to get out of, and then you've got a loose dog. The GL also comes with an instructional DVD and an instruction manual. You MUST use these. Also:
This website is a godsend. Go to "
Using Gentle Leader for Pulling on Leash," "
Fitting the Gentle Leader," and "
Loose Leash Walking Tips and Tricks."
Hope this helps.
